Last-stage buckets for turbines have for some time been the subject of substantial developmental work. It is highly desirable to optimize the performance of these last-stage buckets to reduce aerodynamic losses and to improve the thermodynamic performance of the turbine. Last-stage buckets are exposed to a wide range of flows, loads and strong dynamic forces. Factors which affect the final bucket profile design include the active length of the bucket, the pitch diameter and the high operating speed in both supersonic and subsonic flow regions. Damping and bucket fatigue are factors which must also be considered in the mechanical design of the bucket and its profile. These mechanical and dynamic response properties of the buckets, as well as others, such as aero-thermodynamic properties or material selection, all influence the optimum bucket profile. The last-stage steam turbine buckets require, therefore, a precisely defined bucket profile for optimal performance with minimal losses over a wide operating range.
Adjacent rotor buckets are typically connected together by some form of cover bands or shroud bands around the periphery to confine the working fluid within a well-defined path and to increase the rigidity of the buckets. Grouped buckets, however, can be stimulated by a number of stimuli known to exist in the working fluid to vibrate at the natural frequencies of the bucket-cover assembly. If the vibration is sufficiently large, fatigue damage to the bucket material can occur and lead to crack initiation and eventual failure of the bucket components. Also, last-stage buckets operate in a wet steam environment and are subject to potential erosion by water droplets. A method of erosion protection normally used is to either weld or braze a protective shield to the leading edge of each bucket at its upper active length. These shields, however, may be subject to stress corrosion cracking or departure from the buckets due to deterioration of the bonding material as in the case of a brazed shield.